The Making of Riven (1998) - Remastered

[@jordan2735]

I’m 32 years old and had no idea I drove by their studio nearly every day when I as in high school lmao.

[@liljohn118th]

I lived in Spokane for 7 years and only learned that Cyan was there after I moved away!

[@technoman9000]

Cool story bro

[@hashtagPoundsign]

This is the video that got me into cgi, later coding, and game development.

[@manonthedollar]

ME. TOO.

[@johncorrao9477]

Best video games I have ever immersed myself in. I spent months on each of the games and the creativity and challenge was unmatched.

[@Jameserton]

2:06 The point-and-click movement towards the door is genius. Thanks for sharing the restored footage.

[@anti-ethniccleansing465]

I noticed that too and loved it also! What I want to know is how did they make the door open without anybody physically opening it? Fishing wire? Haha.

[@wawawuu1514]

I laughed when I heard the Riven sound effect

[@Divector8]

The scribe rotating in the mag-lev was so well done. Bravo.

[@EricGranata]

So good. I wish we saw more video games combine CG and live action like this.

[@anti-ethniccleansing465]

@@EricGranata I agree… It’s quite a shame that such a technique went “out of fashion” in the 90s and video game developers instead chose to always make their human characters designed in their 3-D modeling programs. 😢

[@leemiller8258]

Really surprised how young Richard was. I had assumed that he was an older, experienced professional brought in to provide depth. The fact that he was the same age as everyone else makes Riven even more amazing.

[@Ewzzy]

Love seeing a properly deinterlaced video at 60fps

[@BigHushAffiliate]

Thank you for preserving history 🙏🏻

[@purefoldnz3070]

these guys were way ahead of the curve and its great to see Riven finally coming back all these years later to realize its full potential.

[@seanwade8188]

This restoration is beautiful. Really brings life back to the old movie

[@dallashill23]

Riven had mind-blowingly good sound effects

[@EricDolecki]

I had some brief correspondence with Tony after Riven’s release. This games and its aesthetic has forever positively impacted my life. I would gladly live in a Riven-inspired home if such a thing were available. Looking forward to the remake.

[@InnuendoXP]

On a Riven-inspired home, have you looked into 'Earthship' architecture? Particularly with the materials in more arid climates, it might be similar to what you have in mind. House styles in Santa Fe & Pueblo also apparently were influential in the architecture of the Myst series.

[@anti-ethniccleansing465]

You seriously want to live in a tiny straw dome hut? The hell?

[@InnuendoXP]

@@anti-ethniccleansing465 I think they meant the architecture, not the floorplan.

[@PipBin]

I watched this video so many times. The remaster is great! Ill have to go play Riven again!

[@arcluna]

I loved watching this on DVD version of Riven. Really glad to see it given the 4K treatment.

[@marcobucci]

Love the restoration. Also, best game ever.

[@amarug]

One of the absolute masterpieces of the computer age. From graphics, to music, to world design, atmosphere, story telling, puzzles. I can't even find words to express how much I love this game. I played it again as an adult, thinking I might be bored and cringe at it. Far from it, I was sucked into the world and when I finished it, I was a puddle of tears, all the bottled up memories of my childhood and family that were linked with it. Thank you so much for creating such a masterpiece. Still puzzles me that Cyan didn't end up becoming one of the biggest game studios in the world. I guess it's not just skill and vision...

[@NwaHp3]

It is the best Video Game Ever created and will never be bettered. I completely lost myself in Riven years ago on playstation with the little grey mouse on a magazine on an old shaky table sitting on the side of my bed and it was the best gaming experience of my life. I now have all the latest PC gaming equipment and set up and I still can't better it... Cyan are Remaking Riven now in full 3D and VR on unreal 5 engine released later this year, but im not convinced as Myst 21 remake completely ruined the feel of the game. But I would like to walk around Riven in VR. we'll see

[@anti-ethniccleansing465]

I am playing it for the first time right now, and some of the puzzles/physics are nonsensical. For example, there is a three way twisty knob connected to WATER PIPES in the middle of the Boiler Island lake. Because they are WATER PIPES, I spent forever thinking that it would change direction of water being fed/received to 3 different locations (in fact, I remember hoping it would fill up a tiny wading pool with pipes coming into and out of it on Jungle island). It was the only time I’ve had to cheat so far, looking at the hint tab for how that twisty knob worked, and was gobsmacked to read it SUPPLIES POWER! I expect power to look like WIRES, just as we see in a different place in the game, where a silver wire is attached to a generator you turn on and off. I’m still fuming at the incorrect graphics being used to convey a purpose for a puzzle, and now I’m worried I’m going to run into more nonsensical things like that.

[@NwaHp3]

@@anti-ethniccleansing465 its a world that was created by writing in a book. nothing in it makes sense. there are no real life physics or sense. the steam pipes are evident from the very start that that is what powers most machinery. They have totally destroyed the remake with new puzzles and areas that just dont fit in. its just another awful re-imagining of a masterpiece... sad

[@kuschilop]

@@anti-ethniccleansing465 these are not water pipes, they carry steam instead. And many mechanisms in the game are steam-powered.

[@TrevorNWhite]

Played this quite a bit as a kid! Never got far, but I was always captivated by the world

[@Jayy997]

These are very talented people working together at their prime to bring us something incredible

[@EricGranata]

These games were so rad (1 and 2 especially). Loved the lore and the novels.

[@ronaldthomas973]

Thank you so much for this excellent remastered video! I still have my original 5-CD version of Riven after being caught up in Myst lore, (read all of the books as well) and have graduated to the current version of both games on Mac and iPad. REALLY looking forward to the release of the new Riven!

[@thatdesignfeelgaming]

Great little documentary! The thing that is most wild in this documentary to me is the effort they went to to have that actor rotating around in the blue screen, when they could have just had the platform on the other side of the train, and not had it rotate, as the door would be on the correct side. He could have just got into the side of the train (already facing away from you) and sped off I just finished my blind Riven playthrough and it's such an amazing game! Really looking forward to Myst 3 next and seeing how more of this lore shakes out!

[@epicfox567]

Loving your playthroughs and also I never thought about that about the Mag Lev. They really could have taken the easy way out.

[@aPonderousChain]

Incredible game, and magnificent artists and craftsmen at work.

[@stevenray8737]

Its great to have any videos on the Myst series but this was a real treat with the remaster. Cheers!

[@JalenHermes]

I have this video on DVD. I got the DVD version and this documentary was included. Amazing to see it remastered and shared with modern audiences. Thank you.

[@tamasfabian7413]

I had this game as a kid and I remember it was in a nice case with the install being on 5 CD's. I never got too far as it was quite hard for my age (was 6 at the time it came out) but I still remember to this date, it was so mindblowing, the graphics, the music. I am so hyped this is gettin a rework. I will 100% finish it this time!

[@DHellfridge]

I never really got into the Myst series, but I find everything new I learn about the series fascinating. Great documentary!

[@Kabopple]

Great video, glad it could be saved and remastered!

[@gamingnerd]

I still have both this and the making of Myst on the original CD-ROMs! They really take me back!

[@insidiousmaximus]

this is how mature adults were back then, we had real quality people in a world of meritocracy. Look at us now, a world of mediocrity and prolonged adolescence. Tragic.

[@MoJay12]

Still my all time favourite game. For decades now ...

[@AaronGwynaireGameDev]

Have watched this so many times, having had it running in the background during game dev sessions for some great creativity energy boosts :P Lovely to see it remastered! :)

[@benisrood]

Had this game as a kid when it came out. Never got to see the majority of what’s shown in this video! Pretty sure I had to go online (back in the dark ages) to figure out (cheat) how to solve Myst. Beautifully made.

[@sharonguerrette7829]

Just fascinating to see all this come together, art, tech, storyline and actors. My all time favorite game!

[@moretar]

Great work with the remastering

[@phillgirard8610]

Thank you so much for this video. I forgot that I played this game for hours. Now I really miss it a lot.🙂🙂🙂

[@Artyom64824]

11:13 He would send all the states upstairs... getting the work done was HELL. So really, great work. Honestly I am so grateful that people like everyone that helped make this game exist, exist. If I cant like this video anymore then once then, consider this comment a limitless more likes.

[@Jansenbaker]

As someone that has wanted to play this but hasn't been able to, this is an incredible step up from Myst. Going from very limited movement and sparse video, to this much stuff going on, is like another world.

[@oresteszoupanos]

Gorgeous remaster! I may have to go replay Riven soon...

[@Rhodochrone]

Might be worth waiting for Cyan's in-progress remake.

[@WallySketch]

@@Rhodochrone Not really, they changed everything.

[@gharren]

Amazing piece of history. Thanks for the upload.

[@Jogwheel]

I can't wait to go back!

[@LiquidTurbo]

Thank you for uploading and remastering this really important video regarding the history of Riven!!

[@RheingoldxxL]

... thank You so much for the remastering - I still love this Making Of 🙂

[@MrJamielohmier]

I'm 41. I remember watching this documentary...I think if I remember it came with the game or something. I beat this on ps1 with a strategy guide. It was spectacular ❤🎉

[@vintagemusic338]

Why cant these guys come together and make another sequel with todays technology. Thats would be aweasome!

[@sammencia7945]

SteamPunk meets Dragon's Lair puzzles. Stunning graphics even 25 years later.

[@Nettai]

I adore Myst and the world surrounding it. Thanks for uploading this!

[@christopherfrost]

Thank you so much for uploading!

[@jcs1025]

Loved both Myst and Riven.

[@SamSamShine]

This is how you remaster a video: keeping the original 60/50fps and upscaling it to 4k without artificial sharpening.

[@zackeryparkerson]

This is amazing. Thank you.

[@zesty2023]

Its motivating to see that so many cool things even so far removed from when they came out are still being found and uploaded to this day. Watched the hell out of this on the DVD version, seeing this is like being a 60yr old guy who's suddenly gotten eyeglasses for the first time and seeing things in 20/20 quality. Thanks for the upload!

[@sammencia7945]

PCs and cell phones became affordable in 1997. PCs had a cd-rom drive and Myst was on CD. Quake, Q2, Riven all on CD and were essential games 1996 to 1999.

[@HyggeState]

Video games are so cool.

[@rogerstadelmann4286]

A Masterpiece !... ❤

[@jfjfjf]

Riven is amazing thank you for sharing

[@simonwood1461]

Fascinating! I'm not a gamer, but I will be rushing out to buy Riven.

[@rookiesru7271]

Thank you! This is wonderful!

[@CyanSkyAnfall]

I wonder if “the gate room” was hell to make in the remake. Probably not because of the technology and resources Cyan has now but it’s still a lot of different views!

[@mordavian]

Thousands of hours of rendering times in Softimage. I really wonder how it will look like in 2024. Can't wait to immerse into the world of Riven in VR.

[@WallySketch]

This version of Riven is really the best. I was so disappointed with the new rework. It's so sad that they replaced reals actors with mediocre 3d models, and changed the riddles for the worse.

[@kxmode]

That's how I felt about Sierra Games. They were like a 3 hour drive away.

[@NotAVtuberPinkyPromise]

Interesting timing by the algorithm there.

[@jimshomestudio]

Always enjoyed rendering with mental ray.

[@mattshu]

man I remember watching this, didn't it come in the dvd jewelcase? or was it part of its release like Myst was?

[@rambunctiousmedia3350]

5:03 The Riven remake is screwed if Cyan somehow doesn't do that tree justice. It was on the front of the freakin' box when my family and I bought the original game!

[@fastmclaren71]

Love Obduction.

[@ShannonCarey0x53]

You earned a new donor!

[@Prisoner416]

Can I download the video for archival?

[@CocoaBeachLiving]

Damn you! I just had to buy the myst/riven combo on steam.. 😉 😂 My floppies probably won't be readable...lol

[@kylehc15]

imagine if they made riven today it be way different and so many ideas they could do would proble get used

[@MrBenMcLean]

It never made sense to me that just one man, Ghen, could occupy four out of the five islands all by himself, with no concessions to the natives at all, for decades. I don't mean logistically: I mean psychologically. That never felt like genuine human behavior to me.

[@adamdawson8844]

It happens even now. The rich have multiple homes they are barely in. The ultra rich own entire islands they may visit for a week in a year or more. Ghen at least seemed to have a purpose for those that was greater than what we see in reality.

[@MrBenMcLean]

@@adamdawson8844 Truly rich people would have servants on their private islands. The impression we got from the classic game was that it was JUST Ghen on four out of the five islands, with no servants or other subordinates.

[@Spidouz]

They should release it again, remastered, for Xbox Series X…

[@iLikeTheUDK]

The CGI clearly looks very dated nowadays but it's still mindblowing. It looks and feels so rich Imagine how it'd look nowadays though with better shaders that have the grazing angle thing built in and with a better BRDF for the specular, and there's global illumination and everything has both diffuse and specular reflections of everything else and you won't need this fake ambient lighting filling in the shadows, etc

[@ShannonCarey0x53]

There's a remake (with some additions, i understand) coming this year :)

[@this_epic_name]

@@ShannonCarey0x53 Yeah, and I think a Cyan-made sequel (not the garbage that was III and IV) would be good too. Outsourcing III and IV was really bad for the brand.

[@marinomusico5768]

Skyrim Vibes 😂